Marcus Major to start at running back? Instant reaction to Oklahoma Sooners first 2023 depth chart!

game week one means we have depth chart for the 2023 season we'll talk about some of our biggest takeaways and a surprise starter at running back on today's episode of Locked on Sooners you are locked on Sooners your daily podcast on the Oklahoma Sooners part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day [Music] thank you what's up Center Nation thank you for joining us for today's episode of lockdown Sooners today's episode is brought to you by Game Time download the game time app create an account and use code locked on college for twenty dollars off your first purchase my name is John Williams you can follow me on Twitter at John 9 Williams my buddy here is Josh Helmer you can follow him on Twitter at Josh on ref you can also hear a Monday through Friday on the K Ref Sports app available wherever you download your apps Josh we got a depth chart to talk about that we do and let's just Dive Right In there's plenty of takeaways to be had but uh probably for most the big takeaway is in the backfield Marcus major or Toby Walker a starter for Oklahoma what do you make of this well what I make of it is one if Marcus major is listed first there that he's probably going to get your first Carry of the game or first Carry of the Season against Arkansas State this is a guy that the coaching staff has really made sure nobody forgot about as they discussed Javonte Barnes and Gavin Sawchuk Jeff leby's been quick to also point out the work that Marcus Majors done this off season same with DeMarco Murray I mean everybody is is high on this kid and as we've discussed Talent has never been the issue for Marcus major its availability you know and if you're not available it's hard to get a good read on what you're able to do and what you're capable of now we've seen flashes we've seen big plays we've seen tough running out of Marcus major but again the injuries continually jump up and bite them hopefully that's not the case this year and he's able to have the breakout that many have been expecting since that big Cotton Bowl against the Florida Gators back at the end of the 2020 season yeah obviously flashed the potential there but the the injury concerns and then obviously the the eligib eligibility issue as well for Marcus major the the couple of big hurdles and yet here we are somebody that over the course of his career has rushed for a little over 500 yards seven touchdowns but in spots and as you pointed out uh most namely that contest versus Florida has looked like he can be a a Bell cow running back for Oklahoma now maybe in part because of some injuries along the way to a Javonte Barnes Gavin Sawchuk throughout camp and uh because he's healthy and he's not battling the injury bug now we're maybe seeing the rise of Marcus major here at the very tail end of his career which would make for a heck of a story and it kind of would fit a lot of what we've seen out of Oklahoma running backs over the last few years you know Kennedy Brooks kind of breaking out over his final couple Seasons ramandre Stevenson after you know transferring in um you know he he had some eligibility concerns of it or issue issues is in his own right but then had a big you know final year before getting drafted so it would just kind of Follow That same pattern a little bit of Oklahoma running backs having good careers later in their their tenure now I say Kennedy Brooks Kennedy Brooks was great throughout he ended up as one of the best running backs of all time in Oklahoma and I'll preface that by saying only two running backs have only three that have over 3 000 rushing yards and have averaged over seven yards per carry in their in their time at Oklahoma Kennedy Brooks is one of them the other one is Billy Sims so that tells you all you need to know about Kenny Brooks but back to Marcus major the talent's there he's a talented running back and and if now is the time for him to to Really break out and step forward I mean that would be huge Jeff Levy mentioned when he met with the media on Monday that they feel really good about their four guys major Tommy Walker Gavin Sawchuk Javonte Barnes they feel really good about all of those guys we've seen Javonte Barnes and Gavin Sawchuk more recently have really productive performances but that doesn't mean that that's the be all end-all you could see all four guys get significant looks in neutral game scripts for the Sooners throughout the season and I think that's an okay thing if it keeps everybody fresh and they're all productive and efficient by all means play them all well and I'm not taking this depth chart really across the board as finality it's a first depth chart for Oklahoma and that would apply obviously uh to running backs as well I do think if nothing else this signals okay it's Marcus majors time to really have a time in the backfield so he's going to get a serious look Toby Walker as well and we'll see if one of those two guys can versus Arkansas State versus SMU versus Tulsa if they're just too productive to take off the field right because that's kind of what happened with Kennedy Brooks and Eric gray in succession here these last couple of Seasons where it looked like maybe you had a legitimate running back competition or you were going going to be splitting a bunch of carries and hey Javonte Barnes still got his last season for Oklahoma but it was the Eric gray show for the most part because Eric gray was Oklahoma's best running back and so if nothing else Marcus major to me John he's he's first in line to have that opportunity in 2023. yeah and I do think we see them all this week and I think you could see a new starter from week to week just depending on how practices go and who's playing the and playing the hot hand I mean Jeff Levy talked about the hot hand mentality when dishing out carries to the running backs who's showing up and who's playing productive football in game that'll determine how they utilize and deploy those guys so it'll be fascinating to see and but again shout out to Marcus major I mean he he continues to battle and he continues to to persevere through all of the the injuries the setbacks all of that stuff to find an opportunity and I think some of this is rewarding the effort you know rewarding the resiliency rewarding the stick-to-itiveness of a guy like Marcus major I mean this coaching staff they're not just about the the physical traits the things that show up on tape they're also about the intangible things too they want to see guys show that resiliency that ability to bounce back take care of all their business off of the field they're going to reward that kind of stuff on a depth chart as well I think this is a a sign that they're very very pleased with the work that Marcus major has done all off season even if he's not necessarily their best running back on the on the roster they're gonna say Hey listen it's the same thing we discussed with Gavin Freeman when we talk about Gavin Freeman right he does he works harder than everybody he wins everything you you reward that and I think this is part of what the coaching staff is doing with Marcus major is rewarding all of the effort and he's again he's a talented running back in his own right we're gonna have a few more depth chart takeaways coming up we're going to talk about some of the position battles that look like they've been decided on the depth chart we'll do that after we talk to you about our friends over at game time if you're looking for tickets for this Saturday there are plenty of great seats available there at Gaylord family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium for the 11 o'clock matchup against Arkansas State go to game time download the app use promo code locked on College you can get 20 off your first purchase at game time I mean some of the tickets that are going to be available for this Saturday are under 20 so you might be able to get your tickets very cheap um you know after fees and all that so go to game time I mean it's great because I love the game time app because you can see exactly what your view is from your seat on the game time app it doesn't just show you where your seat is it shows you what you're going to be looking at as you sit in your seat and that's a beautiful feature on an app where sometimes it's stressful and hard to decide okay where do I want to sit do I want to sit you know Corner End Zone do I want to see it you know Midfield do I want to see it all the way in the end zone do I want to sit in the upper deck well this gives you a great idea of what you're going to be looking at as you look at the field and look at the product on the field so go to Game Time Again download the app wherever you get your apps the Apple Store Google Play Store wherever that is use code locked on College and get 20 off your first purchase again game time using promo code locked on College download the game time app today so Josh we got more takeaways on the depth charts off the top of your head what was one of the things that really stood out to you as you looked at the depth chart well as we discussed the running back of course but as you start looking elsewhere on the depth chart talking offensively wide receiver looks like what we said we thought it was going to look like atop the depth chart which is Angel Anthony which is Drake Stoops which is Jalil farook listed as starters and then uh sort of behind those guys too about what we would have expected LV Bunkley Shelton alongside Jaden Gibson as an or uh you know you tell me if that uh is something that you you saw coming or not maybe uh for some that's a little bit surprising just given the the talk that we heard coming out of camp that maybe there wasn't quite as much Buzz there but for Nick Anderson and LV Buckley Shelton and Jaden Gibson and Gavin Freeman to be those names right behind the starters I don't think that's altogether surprising either no not at all and Burton Edibles talked about a guy like Angela Anthony to say this is going to be a guy that helps us this year he's going to make a lot of plays for us in Big Time situations uh yeah not surprising to see Gavin Freeman listed behind Drake Stoops or Jacquees Pettaway listed behind Gavin Freeman I think you're going to see all three of those guys involved we you know Jeff Levy's talked about six or seven guys that they're planning to deploy at wide receiver and I think all three of those names in the slot are names you're going to see a lot of this year Freeman Pettaway and Stoops in particular we've heard a lot of Buzz about Nick Anderson and what he's done in Camp Jaden Gibson seems to at least have the right head on his shoulders the right mentality and is continuing to battle and be resilient and push forward still got a lot to prove and earn on the football field as as the depth chart looks but it's it's telling that okay they feel really good about these nine guys that they listed on the depth chart and and I think there's reason to feel good about it you've got a lot of talent and even in a guy like DJ Graham you know showing up on the three deep at least at one of the wide receiver positions I think that just goes to show the effort and the work that he's putting in off the field to put him in a position to potentially get out there and make plays and again it's going to be a deep group and they're going to rotate guys a lot so they can try and keep everybody fresh but it it's good to see kind of the the hierarchy start to unfold a little bit and to bring a guy like Angela Anthony in and then earn a starting spot I think that's that's huge you want somebody to go in there because we we talked about it all off season right we felt like there were six seven guys that could potentially start at wide receiver two opposite of Julio farook well if Angelo Anthony's your starter that means he's beating out all these other guys and you want to see guys go out there and earn it but the depth absolutely is much much better for me I mean another place where I really really love the depth and you love what you're looking at and so on the defensive line I mean defensive tackle it just looks Stout you know it looks bigger uh Travis Davidson of the JP and Trav show and of k-ref sports Fame as well pointed out like the differences between the 2021 defensive tackle group that were all under 290 pounds and the 2023 defensive tackle group where you at least have two guys over 300 pounds on your defensive line in deje on Terry and Isaiah Co especially at that nose tackle spot that's so big man no pun intended or pun intended it's huge you gotta have dudes that can just stay straight straight up eat up space I if if you want any kind of evidence of how important it is to have defensive tackles with that kind of size that kind of Leverage go back and watch the Highlight from David Stone's strip sack uh in his game on Saturday night and you'll find Jaden Jackson in the middle at nose tackle eating up three blocks plus a running back coming to chip that's what a sizable Difference Maker at nose tackle can do for you and I mean Isaiah co-flashed it at different times last year in a rotational spot now a potential starter with a guy like dejon Terry you got two dudes over 310 pounds that are going to be taking up space and and requiring more than just one blocker to open things up for Rondo bother for Ethan Downs for Reggie Grimes for R Mason Thomas for all those dudes that are going to be playing Edge it's going to make their job so much easier because then you're just dealing with the tackle and maybe a running back that's going to help out Maybe not maybe that running back has to stay in the middle of the pocket to help prevent your 310 320 pound nose tackle from just pushing the pocket back your man Ashton Sanders by the way not too far off uh the show Ashton Sanders on the death chart that's right he's uh he's in there at nose tackle listed as an ore with Kelvin Gilliam yeah they just I mean the size obviously you talked about the number of bodies that are listed on the interior uh there's nine bodies right there and I believe there's eight bodies outside for Oklahoma at defensive ends so what uh 17 names to keep track of inside and that's just what's listed on this initial depth chart there's actually other names probably we could even toss into that mix so they've got uh they've got more bodies at their disposal than they've had uh well then they had a year ago one of those names of course Lacey were waiting to get healthy and that uh that'll happen in due time but you've got more depth you've got uh size you've got legitimate girth in both Co and Terry lauulu I mean he's not far off uh in terms of that Jordan Kelly is just a paid under 300 pounds so yeah they've added some serious size there the other defensive story lines I mean the the two obvious ones okay cheetah went the direction that Teddy Layman was telling all of us hey this thing's going Justin Harrington is indeed your starting cheetah uh Brent venables had a lot of nice things to say about Justin Harrington at the Rudy show just that he's he's just playing fast man he just uh has been there working the cheetah for over a year now and the light bulb has has clicked on I don't think that this is a rip situation for DeSean mccola's 2023 season whether it's a cheetah whether occasionally he mixes it one of the other backers or that you know pass rushing situations you bring him in maybe as just a a get to the pass or specialist I I think mccola will be involved there but right now it's Justin Harrington that's starting at cheetah and then the other uh big one would be of course opposite Woody Washington at cornerback and that my friend is indeed another name you've been singing the Praises of gentry Williams yeah and this was kind of the expectation is after last season with CJ Colden you know graduating and Jaden Davis off to Miami and a number of other players leaving in the transfer portal at cornerback your hope and your expectation was a guy like Gentry Williams who was a four-star Corner coming out of high school the number one player in the state of Oklahoma in his recruiting class you you'd expect him to take one of those starting take that starting job opposite of winning Washington and he's done nothing but earn it uh you know aside from the the fainting spell that he suffered in Spring ball you know he's battled back and he looks to be a guy that's going to be a big time difference maker for the Sooners this year and you have to have it you've got to have a guy like him because like we talked about with Savion bird at guard that brings a tenacity and an edge and a an aggressiveness to your offensive line you got to have some of those guys in your defensive backfield too and I believe Gentry Williams plays with that sort of an edge that you love at cornerback somebody who's tenacious and feisty and you know gonna play with with a little bit of swagger almost and you kind of want that at cornerback when you're out there on Islands you want to have a guy that one has the athletic ability has the speed has all the tools but also has the right mentality that says hey I'm not gonna get beat you're not gonna beat me and you might beat me once but you're not gonna beat me again and if that ball's in the air I'm going after it and I'm gonna go get it and I believe that's the kind of mentality that Gentry Williams plays with so again they're going to be guys that are going to play as well you know Josiah Wagner's you know created a lot of Buzz since uh showing up in the spring um Makari Vickers you know Jacoby Johnson Kendall Dolby a lot of those guys are going to get playing time but you want Gentry Williams to solidify himself as that corner opposite of Woody Washington because going into next year you're going to have another position battle at cornerback to replace Woody Washington so it's great to see Gentry Williams really showing up right there linebacker depth is also really really nice to see I feel like just like with Gentry Williams Jan canick you needed to see him step up and take that job at middle linebacker you know you had Danny Stetson coming back you had Justin Harrington at cheetah or dasama call it cheetah but that Mike linebacker spot was a place where we had a little bit of a question they brought in Conor near late to add to the mic competition well it looks like Jared canick has earned the right to start at middle linebacker yeah and that was sort of a sneaky competition even when you think about names like Kobe McKenzie or if Phil pachatti came in and just uh set things on fire because of the potential that we the flashes we saw last season from Canik you would have thought right that he was going to be a starting linebacker from for Oklahoma so just to see it confirmed is definitely one of the takeaways here for me is okay now it's go time for somebody that Oklahoma fans are very very excited about would have been a surprise if it went a different direction but again I think for Oklahoma fans it's just nice to see that confirmed in the way of the depth chart you know going back to the defensive line real quick Ethan Downes or Trace Ford not that that's uh surprising but just kind of reconfirms that yeah Trace Ford is going to be a serious Factor here and then on the other end of that equation it confirms something else too Rondo bathroom there's no ore next to that name for Oklahoma John no but I really like the 3D at one that defensive end position that Rondo bother is starting at I was having this conversation with Brian Cruz one of my Riders over at Sooners wire and talking about okay you're gonna block Rondo bother who's a 6'4 280 pound dude you're going to be getting him on first down second down blocking him for maybe 60 percent of the 70 of the snaps and then oh wait here comes our Mason Thomas at you on Third and eight plus and now you have to go from blocking a 280 pound 6'4 dude that's got the strength athleticism to be able to be effective on the pass rush now you get to block a lightning bolt coming off the edge in our Mason Thomas who's about as Twitchy and athletic as anybody on the roster and he's got the speed speed and the quickness to get into the backfield in a hurry so I really like just kind of the the change of pace potential that's there who knows how the snap count will delineate itself but I really like the idea from you know going you know Miguel Chavis is going to be throwing Rondo bother it out there and just punishing punishing you know that that right tackle and then Here Comes our Mason Thomas and then just throws that completely different uh pass rush style at the offensive tackle that is just gonna throw people off they're all kinds of people off and I think that's the beauty of having diverse talents and then you got adipoji outabare right there as well who is about as athletic as anybody and long as anybody on the roster you know we just saw his brother blow up the NFL scouting combine and earn himself a first round draft selection because of his athleticism well adiposa adibare he is an athlete and he's a long athlete and that's going to cause offensive tackles problems so I really like what what they've kind of developed here in that okay maybe over on Ethan downside you've got a lot of similar body types and downs and Grimes and Marcus Stripling but then over on the other side you've got three very different style of pass rushers or defensive ends in bothroid are Mason Thomas and adipo jardabare that I think it's going to really cause a lot of Havoc for opposing offensive coordinators opposing offensive tackles when they get into those you know third and long situations okay which one are you bringing at me or if it's a you know first down First and Ten and they decide to you know run our uh Ronald bother it out there I like the options that they have and I think what they're going to do defensive end-wise from the pass rush perspective is going to be so much better than what it was a year ago because just the talent is so much better than what it was a year ago well and just to pay off the big board if you will if you're watching Along on YouTube the position battles decided I know that we've we've kind of run down some of this but just sort of in a one clean Fell Swoop here left guard for Oklahoma Savion bird so that's that's what we expected offensive line uh if you missed it left tackles starting Walter Rouse bird Raymond Center McCabe matar Right Guard Tyler Guyton right tackle that's what we expected and really the one spot that was in question was left guard it is bird Marcus major or tawiwalker then you get down to Javonte Barnes or Gavin Sawchuk so that would I think be uh the other big ones and then obviously just wide receiver which we've talked about how that's shaken out maybe still some defensive position battles on the interior for Oklahoma well I think it's notice what's notable on that is Jonah Ula you know being listed as a or starter with Jordan Kelly you know a dude who moved from defensive end to defensive tackle this off season added some weight and someone that the coaches really liked because of his kind of persistence in his play you know he doesn't give up on a play he plays to the whistle he plays hard he plays fast he's a quick guy on the inside and I think that quickness and that strength and size is going to be kind of a lot for most guards to deal with um at the the NCAA level so it's going to be really fascinating to watch but I do think with those top four guys at defensive tackle you know Ula and Kelly at the defensive tackle were the three technique the guy that lines up between the guard and the tackle or with the nose tackle position the guys that are lining up over the center or between the center and the guard I think you've got a really nice group of options that are plus options and dudes that can stop the run and rush the passer with equal effectiveness this I think some of what we saw at the end of the Alex Grinch tenure was guys like Neville Gallimore you know Jalen Redmond Perry on Winfrey they were pretty good at getting to the pastora or getting to the passer they could rush the passer pretty well but as far as you know good run stuffers it was a little bit lacking and that's kind of come to fruition but as you've developed Isaiah Cohen Jordan Kelly and Adam and dejan Terry to the mix at defensive tackle it improves your run defense a whole lot more Josh any final takeaways that you have from the depth chart before we get out of here today yeah just a couple and then of course the the final cleanup Justin Harrington cheetah and uh Gentry Williams starting Corner in terms of like the big competitions other things that uh I I did notice at tight end no Llewellyn no Helms listed on the depth chart so that again just speaks to those guys have been dinged up we keep hearing that they're coming back they're coming back they're getting healthy and then it's like a setback here or a setback there so stockner one Blake Smith 2 uh Josh Faneuil three or Kade McIntyre what was fascinating with Jason Lewellen is he is listed on the Long Snapper depth chart at Long Snapper 3. so I'm not sure exactly where he's at but you know again a dude that struggled with injuries during spring and fall started to look like he's working his way back we'll see how this all continues you know he could end up getting significant playing time this year it's just where things sit right now as you enter Arkansas State so yeah tight end is going to be interesting you need Austin stogner to stay healthy I think that is if you're you know sending out Good Vibes to anybody on this team Austin stogner is the dude to send out good fives from he's battled through so much if you uh you know didn't get a chance to read what he wrote for soonersports.com highly recommend the piece just a really good background into what all went down um at the end of that what was that the 2020 season when he got injured against Kansas and then missed a good portion of the off season recovering from the infection to his leg and then uh the transfer the transfer back back all that good stuff he just does a really great job of just kind of walking you through everything that transpired over those few years so that's going to do it for today's episode of lockdown Sooners thanks so much for tuning in being a part of the show subscribe to the show wherever you get your podcast we're free and available on every platform follow Josh on Twitter at Josh on ref follow myself at John 9 Williams follow the show on Twitter at locked on Sooners again subscribe over on YouTube hit that notification Bell to let you know when new episodes drop we'll be back for more Oklahoma Sooners coverage all week long getting you ready for Arkansas State at 11 A.M on Saturday he's Josh Elmer I'm John Williams we'll talk to you next time 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